One of the problems that a new northern landscape may encounter is a lack of plant material to fill the landscape with. Young gardens need time to grow and fill in and in the meanwhile can look pretty barren. Plant some ground cover! The more the merrier. Use ground cover to help fill in between plants, fountains and garden decor, or around stepping stones.
Before you start planting just anything you need to choose your ground cover based on the light, water, and traffic conditions in your garden. These are some great ground cover suggestions to fit just about any northern garden need.
If you have a sunny garden you might want to consider planting some sedum. It comes in many different foliage and flower colors ranging from yellow and white and bright green to pink and burgundy. Because sedum is drought tolerant it will do great in poor soil conditions. It is often used on a lot of those new fangled green roof tops to give you an idea of what kind of environment it likes. The hotter the better! Sedum is not a good choice if it is going to get stepped on.
Another good choice for a sunny garden with a path and some stepping stones, is the kitchen herb called thyme. It is good for an area that gets a lot of foot traffic, such as around some stepping stones, because of it’s aromatic qualities. Give your landscape a cottage garden feel with this herb that also comes in a variety of growth habits and color choices such as creeping thyme, woolly thyme or lemon thyme…to name a few.
If you have a shade garden you really should consider some pachysandra. It is a good choice for an area that gets very little sun or an area that gets some dappled sun. Pachysandra is a good choice under a walnut tree which can be difficult to plant under. Pachysandra always looks good and is easy to maintain.Pachysandra is less intrusive than vvinca, another popular ground cover choice.
The shaded woodland garden will be improved by using some wild ginger. It has handsome dark green circular leaves and forms a dense matte with little ground hugging flowers that are popular with toads and woodland critters. Plant it around the base of a [bird feeder|recycled glass bird feeder] to hide the cast off seeds. Supposedly there are some evergreen varieties.
Whether you have shade or sun a ground cover is always going to enhance your garden landscape. They cover up all the unattractive areas in your garden and also improve the vigor of existing plants by shading their roots. Ground cover can unify your garden landscape. Put some [recycled glass gazing globes|gazing balls] in a patch of ground cover for an easy garden decoration idea and just enjoy!

In a past life I had a garden on an old street with many walnut trees also known as Juglans Regia. It did not take long before I noticed that a lot of the plants I was planting were dying;petunias, peonies, roses and impatiens would just not grow or bloom. Doubts about my garden competence began to worry me at night.

Low and behold it turns out that walnuts are a garden problem because there are quite a few plants that just can’t live underneath them. A poison called juglone oozes out of the roots of the walnut tree and contaminates the plants below-it is not a good idea to eat anything grown beneath a walnut…not sure if that is true or just some kind of urban legend). Take a look upward to see if you have a walnut tree and this might explain why your hanging fuschia plants keep dying. Your garden problems might be solved if you are dealing with a walnut tree!

Fear not! If you have a walnut tree in your landscape do not fear. A walnut tree is actually something all your neighbors will be envious of because of the beauty and shade it provides. Where could be a nicer place to spend a hot afternoon than underneath a walnut. Not to mention all the wonderful walnuts you can collect for whatever you use them for.

Here is a pretty thorough list of plants that I have had success growing under my walnut trees:

Annual plants that can grow under a walnut tree:

Pansie

Begonia

Marigold

Morning Glory

Flower Bulbs:

Winter Aconite

Narcissus

Tulip

Blue Scilla

Snow Drop

Perennial plants that can grow beneath a walnut tree:

Aster

Common Milkweed (A Main stay in my garden!)

Hosta

Many ferns, for example Japanese Painted Fern

Coral Bell

Day Lilly

Pachysandra

Black Eyed Susan

Spider Wort

Dutchman’ Breeches

Violet

Bugle Weed

Jack in the Pulpit

Wild Geranium

Joe-Pye Weed

Creeping Phlox

Sedum

Trillium

Bee Balm

Shrubs that can grow beneath a walnut tree:

Boxwood

Oakleaf Hydrangea

This is perhaps not the longest list and I am positive that many more plants would or could do well; these are just the ones I have tried and had success with in the garden’s I take care of and my own garden. Good luck and hope that this will help you with any questions about what you can grow around your walnut trees. And you know, if all else fails under your walnut tree then put some cool garden decor, recycled glass gazing ball or perhaps a recycled glass bird feeder there to provide the area with some extra visual interest!